The Campaign

There are 24 million child brides in India. Despite that, India rejected the UN's first-ever global resolution to fight child marriage. So, an NGO-Child Survival India wanted to activate the entire nation and end this indifference. But they couldn't afford a mass media campaign. Because every married Indian woman wears a red bindi (a red dot on the forehead). We decided to go to the masses and launch a peaceful movement against child marriage; by asking them to wear a white bindi (a white dot). Over 4 months, we created a 6x4 feet art installation of a girl child with 39000 white bindis; because 39000 girls become child brides every day. Wherever it travelled, its interaction with the viewer made them aware of the magnitude of this social evil. It urged them to wear a white bindi and spread more awareness. In just 45 days, the white bindi has reached out to 160 villages and caught on like wildfire everywhere. From malls, restaurants, college campuses, the fashion world and even Bollywood, it's activating Indians and providing hope to millions of child brides. And most importantly, it's changing and educating India, one place at a time.

The Brief

Reaching out to the change-makers for support was an eye-opener. It was shocking to see how little they knew about the severity of child marriage. Further digging revealed there was widespread lack of awareness about its impact on young girls, despite it affecting 39000 girls every day. With this issue being prevalent in rural silos, it was difficult for change-makers, who live in cities, to relate to the issue. So, we set the following as our goals & success measures: 1. Create awareness at a national level through art and fashion 2. Mobilize financial support to end child marriage

Results

In just 45 days, the campaign has garnered 22 million media impressions, received 4904 likes and achieved a click to conversion ratio of 61.5%. It has sparked conversations about child marriage, online and off-line. Many articles/features in national and regional newspapers have reached 9.2 million readers. It has managed to sell 60,000+ white bindis, initiate 1.5 million college volunteers and catch the eyeballs of the opinion-makers of our society (like Bollywood actresses, political parties and other civil society foundations). Most importantly, all the money and awareness we have raised, is helping Child Survival India conduct awareness workshops for adolescent girls in 160 villages across India. All of this, has been generated without any media spend. In fact, the only money we spent was on buying 100,000 white bindis, which was just 7000 rupees (83 euros)!

Execution

In March 2014, we unveiled our interactive art installation at India's biggest cultural hub- the India Habitat Center. On its first day, the installation had an audience of 750 people. In fact, it raised 65000 rupees (enough to sponsor 4 village awareness workshops). Then, over the next 24 days, we took our installation to various public places like malls, restaurants, business districts and college campuses. Seeing how gladly people were joining in, we told India's leading fashion designer about the white bindi movement. He instantly agreed to take it to the India Fashion Week stage. Thereof, the earned media coverage amplified our initiative. Concerned Indians have started following us on Facebook and Twitter. And many of them are volunteering their support, with each passing day. Now our plan is take it to every corner of India. So we can change and educate every village, every city, dot by dot.

The Situation

There are 24 million child brides in India. That's 40% of the world's child brides. Despite that, in October 2013, India rejected the UN's first-ever global resolution to fight child marriage. Shocking? No! But, this news failed to capture any attention. In fact, child marriage is a social evil that has always been brushed under the carpet by India's leaders and policymakers, despite its magnitude. So, Child Survival India, an NGO based in New Delhi, wanted to activate the entire nation and end this indifference. But they couldn't afford a mass media campaign.

The Strategy

It was abundantly clear by now that the puzzling apathy displayed by an otherwise empathetic bunch of Indian people sprung from the fact that they weren't in it together! The change-makers and the victims existed into 2 different silos. Unless one went looking for the other, the issue remained dormant. So, we took two key steps: First. We took the popular cultural symbol of wedlock a Red Bindi (a red dot on the forehead). And we made a white bindi (a white dot on the forehead) into a peaceful symbol to launch a movement against child marriage. Second. We introduced a travelling art installation that would shake people out of their comfort zones, make them aware of the magnitude of this social evil and give them a simple way to be part of the solution.